Gujarat’s ‘Tera Tujhko Arpan’ initiative returns stolen goods worth Rs 500 crore to citizens

Gandhinagar, Sep 8: Gujarat’s unique initiative ‘Tera Tujhko Arpan’, launched in 2022, has emerged as a model for speedy recovery of stolen and seized property to rightful owners without bureaucratic hurdles.

Replying to a question in the Assembly, Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi said that since the launch, police have organised 9,081 programmes across the state, returning valuables worth over Rs 500 crore to 40,811 beneficiaries.

“The aim is to ensure that innocent citizens do not suffer years of delay in getting back property seized during theft, robbery, or fraud cases. With quick court orders and public handover programmes, property is returned in the shortest possible time,” Sanghavi said.

The minister added that Rs 112 crore worth of property was returned just in the past week alone. Tribal districts too have seen major benefits in Surat, Navsari, Tapi, Dang, and Valsad, 2,315 people received valuables worth over Rs 105 crore.

In one notable case, a tribal elder in Songadh got back his house that had been usurped by a moneylender.

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Sanghavi highlighted the Gujarat Police’s swift response in high-profile cases, citing the Rs 7.86 crore diamond heist in Surat, which was cracked within 48 hours, with the recovered diamonds handed back to the owner within a week.

He said the programme’s popularity stems from its transparent process -- police stations obtain court orders promptly and return seized property to complainants through public events, transforming the scheme into what he described as “a blessing for citizens.”

Similar to Gujarat’s “Tera Tujhko Arpan”, several other states have introduced initiatives to return stolen or seized property to rightful owners. In Punjab, Jalandhar Police held an “Arpan Samaroh” in December 2024, handing back property worth Rs 13 crore, including vehicles, jewelry, and mobile phones.

Maharashtra too has been proactive -- Nagpur Police, during Raising Day celebrations in January 2025, returned goods valued at over Rs 3 crore, while Nashik Police have organized multiple “muddemal” programmes, giving back items worth between Rs 51 lakh and Rs 97 lakh. In Karnataka, the Police recently returned valuables worth Rs 2 crore, while Kalaburagi Police handed back stolen assets worth Rs 56 lakh. Pune Police distributed stolen property worth Rs 5.31 crore, and Mumbai Police returned nearly Rs 3 crore worth of items, including jewelry, laptops, and vehicles.

West Bengal’s Bidhannagar Police run regular drives to restore lost goods such as motorbikes, phones, and laptops, and in Andhra Pradesh, Vizag Police recovered and returned property worth Rs 1.2 crore in July 2025, in addition to thousands of mobile phones traced through digital tracking.

(IANS/NS)

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